June 18, 2012 
ISSUE: 11
Hello CBOC Members,  
 
Contra Costa County CaLBOC Chapter Meeting
Saturday June 23rd, 10am-Noon in Martinez
Everyone is invited! Organization and the 2012 CCC Grand Jury Report on School Bond Oversight Committees will be discussed.
To register for this meeting and more info: REGISTER HERE
June 23rd Contra Costa CaLBOC Meeting Flyer: june23flyer.pdf

Contra Costa County Grand Jury Report 1208 School Bond Oversight Committees

Raising the Bar 

Report by the 2011-2012 CCC Grand Jury, May 10, 2012 

EXCERPTS: Recommendations (partial list  of 12 Recommendations) 

1.  A district's ballot language should inform voters of all intended uses of bond funds, the specific projects to be undertaken, the schools where the projects will be undertaken, the district's initial priorities, and a realistic estimate of project costs. ... ...

3.  In recruiting candidates for appointment to oversight committees, a district should seek nominations from the groups required to be represented on the committee by Education Code Section 15282(a). ... ...

5.  A district should require all candidates for bond oversight committees to submit written applications listing their background, qualifications, a statement of interest, and disclosure of any prior employment by, or prior involvement or business relationship with, the district.

6.  A district should make available to committee members, for their consideration in creating committee bylaws and operating procedures, copies of:  (LInks provided below may take you to another website)

9. A district should provide financial data and reports to committee members sufficiently prior to meetings to permit meaningful and effective review and oversight. ... ...  

Complete 13 page CCC Grand Jury Report (1.5MB)CCCGJ1208.pdf

School bond watchdog rule unenforced    Citizen committees supposed to monitor spending  
Natasha Lindstrom, Staff Writer | June 17, 2012                    
EXCERPT: Under California law, school districts that pass bond measures must create a citizen's oversight committee - a group of at least seven community members charged with ensuring taxpayer-backed bond money isn't misspent or wasted.  But if a district shirks that mandate, it's not likely to get caught. No state body is enforcing the rule, and no penalties are in place for violating it.

     In one local case, Helendale School District officials cannot provide records - agendas, minutes or even dates - of any oversight committee meetings for more than a year after its watchdog group should've been formed to review decisions around a $20 million bond measure approved in 2008. ... 

     ... A 2009 report by the Little Hoover Commission criticized oversight procedures for Prop. 39, expressing concerns over school districts thwarting the committees by not properly educating members or denying them opportunities to engage the public. The report also stated that many districts weren't conducting the required performance audits.

     "The oversight committee, it was the effort to put lipstick on a pig was basically what it was. It's all cosmetic," said Kris Vosburgh, spokesman for the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, which opposed Prop. 39 altogether for making it easier to raise property taxes. "Part of the problem is the people who are sitting on these committees are selected by the same people who put the bonds on the ballot." 

     There have been efforts to make bond oversight committees more effective, such as training offered by the nonprofit California League of Bond Oversight Committees. ... ... A district not following bond election law, Dresslar said, could risk a lawsuit from a local taxpayer to invalidate the bonds - ...     For complete article please visit:

In This Issue
Grand Jury Report on School Bond Oversight Committees
CBOCs are Supposed to Monitor Spending
Mission Statement
Archived CaLBOC Newsletters
Complete URLs to links

Contra Costa County CaLBOC Chapter     

First Meeting
June 23, 2012  
10 AM - 12 PM
La Tapatia Restaurant
536 Main Street 
Martinez, CA 94553
REGISTER HERE  

 TOPICS:
Organization of Chapter

The Contra Costa County Grand Jury Report 
The report is to the Governing Boards of: Acalanes Union School, Antioch Unified School District, Byron Union School District, Contra Costa Community College District, John Swett Unified School District, Martinez Unified School District, Mt. Diablo Unified School District, Pittsburg Unified School District, West Contra Costa Unified School District.

The Next CaLBOC

Board Meeting is 

November 9, 2012 

10 am -  3 pm

Sacramento

Conference call service will be available.

Mission Statement 
What is Our Mission  

To promote school district accountability by improving the training and resources available to California's Proposition 39 School Bond Oversight Committees and educating the state legislature, local school boards and the public about the oversight and reporting powers these Citizens' Bond Oversight Committees (CBOCs) have, and to advocate on a state level, where appropriate, on issues of common concern to all CBOCs.

Join Our Mailing List!
Archived CaLBOC Newsletters
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Complete URLs to CaLBOC links
California Government Penal Code Section 933.05: http://www.calboc.com/reports/code933.05.pdf
Flyer for June 23rd Contra Costa CaLBOC Meeting: http://calboc.com/reports/june23flyer.pdf
To register for June 23rd meeting and more info please visit: http://ccccalboc.eventbrite.com/
www.CaLBOC.org 
We encourage you to post and comment on our CaLBOC Blog 
California League of Bond Oversight Committees, 510-799-1141, [email protected]